Easter is a time for reflection and as we approach the end of the Dáil Spring session, it provides us with an opportunity to evaluate our work to date. This first quarter of the year has been a particularly busy time for the Department.
We have just completed the Oireachtas (Ministerial & Parliamentary Offices) Amendment Bill 2013. The Bill has passed all stages, signed by the President and the legislation will commence in the next term. This brings our total number of pieces of legislation enacted to 17 as follows:
- Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 2011
- Appropriation Act 2011
- Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (Amendment) Act 2011
- Statute Law Revision Act 2012
- Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and Other Provisions) Act 2012
- Ombudsman (Amendment) Act 2012
- Appropriation Act 2012
- Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2012
- Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) Act 2013
- National Lottery Act 2013
- Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest Act 2013
- Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act 2013
- Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privilege and Procedures) Bill
- Construction Contracts Act 2013
- Appropriation Act 2013
- Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 (Amendment) Act 2013
- Oireachtas (Ministerial & Parliamentary Offices) Amendment Bill 2013
In January, we published the Government’s new Public Service Reform Plan 2014-2016 and the Second Progress Report on the 2011 Reform Plan. Also, the Government agreed to proceed to the next stage of a Financial Management Shared Services Project for the Civil Service, Defence and Justice sectors.
In February, the Department granted the next licence to operate the National Lottery to Premier Lotteries Ireland. The signature of the new National Lottery Licence marks a successful outcome to this Department’s work in relation to the competition for the licence. As I announced during Budget 2014, half of the €405 million achieved for the transaction is earmarked for a number of job-rich projects including the Wild Atlantic Way, the 1916 Commemoration and the National Sports Campus. The second installment of €202.5million will be delivered, bringing the construction of the New Children’s Hospital closer.
I also approved the signing of the sale agreement for Bord Gais Energy, with an associated enterprise value of €1.1billion. The transaction is expected to close at the end of May.
This year the Department is also leading, in conjunction with Department of the Taoiseach, Civil Service Renewal. This is a collaborative process to renew the vision and strategy for the Civil Service and will ensure that the Civil Service as a whole has the capacity and capability required to meet the increasing demands and pressures facing the organisation and those that work within it. A series of Town Hall Meetings with Government Departments took place across the country providing an opportunity for a range of open, honest and practical conversations about the future of the Civil Service.
Following the success of last year’s EU Presidency, Ireland was successful in securing an increased Structural Funds allocation of €1.2 billion to support the Government’s jobs and growth agenda, including special allocations for the BMW Region and the PEACE Programme, and this week we secured Government approval to submit the next Structural Funds spending plans to Brussels where they will be the subject of intense negotiations in the coming months.
We launched our new website which provides an excellent public platform to communicate the ongoing work of the Department.
Easter and Spring are a time for new beginnings and I look forward to the coming term. Before it begins, I will be attending The Paris Conference: from Open Data to Open Government in Paris, followed by the Informal Ministerial Meeting on Cohesion Policy in Athens. Stay tuned to our twitter feed, the website and the blog for updates.
Happy Easter!
Brendan Howlin, TD, Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform
Image courtesy of Salvatore Vuono and FreeDigitalPhotos.net

